Basketball players claim Southern Conference top awards

By Times-News

Published: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 at 12:24 AM.

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Davidson’s De’Mon Brooks and Chattanooga’s Taylor Hall, a pair of basketball players, have been named Male and Female Athletes of the Year in the Southern Conference, the league announced Tuesday.

They will be recognized during the league’s annual honors dinner tonight.

Brooks, the sixth Davidson athlete to win the conference’s male award, earned Player of the Year honors in men’s basketball from both the league’s coaches and media members while becoming a first-team all-conference selection for the third straight season.

The senior forward led the league with 20.5 points per game and 66 percent shooting from the field as Davidson went 20-13 overall and 15-1 in Southern Conference play. The Wildcats made four postseason tournament appearances in Brooks’ four seasons.

He finished his Davidson career ranked seventh in all-time scoring (1,777 points), sixth in rebounding (765 boards), fifth in field-goal accuracy (53.5 percent) and 10th in blocked shots (71) at the school.

Hall, the eighth Chattanooga athlete to win the conference’s female award, became the first women’s basketball player in league history to collect Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Outstanding Player in the tournament during the same season.

The senior forward was the only women’s player in the league to rank in the top five in scoring (fifth with 15 points per game), rebounding (third with 8.6 boards per game) and assists (second with 4.5 per game) this past season.

Hall had 14 double-doubles and helped the Mocs win the Southern Conference regular-season and tournament titles. Chattanooga went 29-4 overall and 19-1 in the league while making its 12th trip to the NCAA Tournament.

The league’s Athlete of the Year awards are chosen by the conference’s athletics directors and a media member representing each school.

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HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Davidson’s De’Mon Brooks and Chattanooga’s Taylor Hall, a pair of basketball players, have been named Male and Female Athletes of the Year in the Southern Conference, the league announced Tuesday.

They will be recognized during the league’s annual honors dinner tonight.

Brooks, the sixth Davidson athlete to win the conference’s male award, earned Player of the Year honors in men’s basketball from both the league’s coaches and media members while becoming a first-team all-conference selection for the third straight season.

The senior forward led the league with 20.5 points per game and 66 percent shooting from the field as Davidson went 20-13 overall and 15-1 in Southern Conference play. The Wildcats made four postseason tournament appearances in Brooks’ four seasons.

He finished his Davidson career ranked seventh in all-time scoring (1,777 points), sixth in rebounding (765 boards), fifth in field-goal accuracy (53.5 percent) and 10th in blocked shots (71) at the school.

Hall, the eighth Chattanooga athlete to win the conference’s female award, became the first women’s basketball player in league history to collect Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Outstanding Player in the tournament during the same season.

The senior forward was the only women’s player in the league to rank in the top five in scoring (fifth with 15 points per game), rebounding (third with 8.6 boards per game) and assists (second with 4.5 per game) this past season.

Hall had 14 double-doubles and helped the Mocs win the Southern Conference regular-season and tournament titles. Chattanooga went 29-4 overall and 19-1 in the league while making its 12th trip to the NCAA Tournament.

The league’s Athlete of the Year awards are chosen by the conference’s athletics directors and a media member representing each school.